Workmen's advocate. (New Haven, Conn.) 1883-1891, 1887-05-21
SOCIALIST SATIRE.
"EXGZAYCE' IN "DAYLIGHT.
EAT YOUR CHILDREN -
CONTINUE ALTON.

cred, and that is the one to which obiec-
ton must be taken. So long as the big
fish capitalists eat the little fish work
ers), and the latter eat mud, all is well.
But if, as now proposed, the little fish,
instead of eating mud, take to devour-
ing the 'Iittler" tish-their own offspring,
to wit-the time will speedily arrive
when the supply of the smaller fry (pdce
the faithful few of Malthus), will become
exhausted; and what will .hc big fish do
then, poor things? For without the
little fish (workers) the big fish capital
ists) cannot be; and if the little fish
"gobble" the "lttler" ones, where is the
supply to come from wherewith to make
the ''sprats or workers-on which the
"sharks or apitalists-subsst? Why,
that is like living upon capital instead of
interest; and what weI-regulated capital
list can endorse such a proceeding?
The writer in the first enthusiasm of
his artless admiration for this Gospel of
Cannibalism, described the idea as a new
one. las for the truth that there
is nothing new under the sun
this same civilized Cannbalism-s to
term it-has been suggested before. 1t
has even, comparatively speaking, been
somewhat extensively put into practice;
though not, it must be added in Justice
to those who have now revived it, on
wholesale scale, and as panacea for
poverty. Various early writers make
mention of the practice, among them
Eusebius C'Hist. Eccles," lib ", chap.
H. and Justin Martyr ("Apologies of the
Fathers" l., 30; H., AZ. Thyestes was
not above enjoying occasionally the
dreadful luxury of eating his children's
flesh; and the woman referred to in ii.
Kings, vi, 26, %, %, coolly informed
the king that she and a neighbor "boiled
her son and did eat him." Many other
similar references are to be found in the
Old Testament, vide, e. g., Jer. xix, 8;
Lev. XVI, 90; Deut. xviii, 53-51;
Ezekiel ", 10. Indeed but for the we'll
established fact that these worthy canni-
bal capitalists who have just rushed to
the rescue of the starving workers with
this inspired remedy for poverty-but
for the fact that they never read their
Bible, that their mental pabulum con-
sists almost wholly of business cores
pundence, banking accounts, and bills Of
exchange, one would hazard the coniec-
ture that it is to laudable study of the
Scriptures on their part the world is in
debted for the present resrscitation of
this idea. But no; it is the ingenious
philanthropy-those unappreciative So
cialists would call it the native devitry
of these benefactors of mankind to
which alone the revival is due, and
which deserves, as it will unquestionably
obtain, the lasting recognition of all we'll
wishers of their race.
The writer, while thus allowing to the
full the indisputable claim of the canni-
bal capitalists mentioned to be regarded
as the pioneers of this coming "boom"
in our midst-while admitting that it is
to them, and to them only that we shall
be under obligations for the impetus this
warmed up abolsher of chronic egestu
osity will undoubtedly receive in popular
appreciation, - he would nevertheless, in
addition to the mild structures he has al
ready felt it his duty, as a candid friend,
to pass upon the idea venture to suggest
that the ast-named Biblical reference
above contains hint which even they
might con with advantage He has al
ready indicated one weak point in the
new social system about to be inaugur-
ated. The ''big fish" or capitalists, are
still to eat the little fish, or workers, as
at present; but the latter, instead Of IS
now, eating "mud," are to eat their
children-a fatal feature of the scheme,
inasmuch as by this means the race
would soon be decimated out of exist
ence And another blot on the fair es-
cutcheon of the system is this - The big
ones" we are told, are to "eat the little
ones" Here the phrase "big ones refers
to the workers (parents) and little
ones" to their children. Very good. But
no provision --thrice-happy word lis, it
will be observed, here made for the little
ones themselves. They must eat first in
order to be advantageously eaten after
wards; but what they are to eat is not
stated. Now, this is nothing short of a
fatal omission. however in the narticu-